You can't get too far into an internet browsing session without coming across a blog of some description: Check out my blog here, go and look at that blog there; blogging, blogging everywhere!

Blogs are a comparatively new way to reach the market. The first electronic blog was created in 1994, and in that relatively short timeframe, blogs have developed from online personal reflections into one of the most effective strategies adopted by marketers across the world.

According to the Marketing Professionals, 2 million blogs are uploaded online every single day. That’s 730,000,000 opportunities to feast your eyes on brand new content every single year! So with figures like that, somebody must have some pretty solid evidence that blogging is an effective strategy!

And I agree.

While blogs were once an online journal for travellers satiating their wanderlust or creative types documenting their out-of-the-ordinary careers; these days everyone, and I mean everyone is blogging. Not just the cool kids.

On one end of the scale small, local businesses are showering you with content on why their service beats the competition. On the other end, renowned global companies such as Facebook have a regularly updated blog page. They call it the Newsroom. But it’s a blog.

If you can show me a website that doesn't have a consistent blogging strategy in place; I will show you a company which isn't dedicated to reaching their full marketing capacity.

So why do we blog?

Are we just a generation which enjoys talking about ourselves, or are there more practical reasons that blogging is one of the most successful online marketing tactics in use today?

Here are some important reasons that blogging is the best way to build your business online and if you're not already; why it's time for you to jump on the blog-wagon.

You will increase traffic to your site.

If you have your website optimised for SEO, blogging is the most efficient way to draw traffic to your site so you can showcase your product or service. If you look carefully, you'll notice that blogs are usually written around keywords and phrases that the ideal customer is likely to type into a search engine. The more common your niche, the more you can drill into some long-tailed keywords to make sure that your site appears higher up in the SERP ranking.

Google prides itself on giving their users the most accurate results to the search enquiries every time, so if your content is in line with the search terms that your market is looking for, your site will appear higher up in the results pages.

Don’t take that as permission to stuff keywords into content. Your blogs should first and foremost provide value to your audience and be written in such a way that they’re easy to read.

You'll show your authority in your niche.

While freelance copywriters and ghostwriters are often responsible for creating blogs, they're usually written from information given to them by business owners. This documentation of expert knowledge helps to build your reputation as an authority in your niche which creates trust with your target market. If you write about your experiences, your knowledge, and talk in detail about how your product or service is better than the competition; you can't fail to win more customers.

You will build a relationship with your target market.

Regular blogging is one of the best avenues to reach your market. If you're giving them valuable information and they like the tone you or your ghostwriters use, they'll subscribe to your blog and become a regular follower. Once you've created that relationship, as soon as they have a need for your product or service, you'll be at the forefront of their mind, and you'll have a customer for life. Maintain regular contact to ensure that they remain loyal to you and your brand.

You can reach a lot of people.

Blogs are an easy way to get your content, and therefore your brand, to the other side of the world in minutes! If you write a blog that hits the content jackpot; social media makes it easy to engage with and share your content. While this was once the stuff nightmares were made of; now 'going viral' is no longer a scary medical condition but it’s something to accomplish! You need to be creative and unique which is why a freelance blog writer can provide you with their expertise to make sure the content you're producing is in line with an effective blogging strategy. With every upload, a blog gives you the potential to reach internet searchers worldwide.

You'll add personality to your business.

Adding personality to your business is a fundamental part of creating a brand that people can identify with and relate to. Blogging gives you another avenue to do this as you can write about anything you like. You can put your personality into blogs and, as long as it's relevant to your business, attract exactly the kind of followers who you're trying to appeal to.

You’ll add a point of difference to your competitor.

Blogs are unique to you and your business and they can be written on a subject of your choice. OK, if you’re blogging for business it’s important to have a strategy of course, but within that strategy you can write about anything that takes your fancy! And because of that, you automatically gain the leading edge on your competition.

While you might have identical products in identical locations, your blogs are completely different (unless you’re putting some very questionable plagiarised content on your site that is!). And nobody can compete with your own unique viewpoint on your products, industry and experience.

Standing out from the crowd is one of the most effective ways to sell your product above the competition and blogs are the ideal avenue for you to do that.

They increase the time spent on your site.

Google classes the length of time someone spends on your site and uses it in your SEO ranking. The amount of time a user spends on your site shows Google that they've provided the searcher with the content they were looking for. A blog of 1,000 words will take someone approximately seven minutes to read which will show Google that they were right to provide your content in their search results. Place internal links on your site from blog to blog to increase the time a user spends on your site even further so that the next time someone searches for the same enquiry, the Google bots will show your content again.

Blogs convert traffic into leads.

A blog isn't just there to give your market something nice to read. Perhaps most significantly, adding a call to action or two to your blog post will ultimately turn website traffic into leads. Whether you want your reader to ‘subscribe to your newsletter' ‘request a quote' or if you've written your content to appeal to someone who's ready to buy; ‘buy now', a blog post has the potential power to make a reader act.

An experienced copywriter will tailor your blogs to the Google searcher who is at the buying end of the funnel and write content that draws them to your site and encourages them to take action.

Blog posts become more valuable with time.

While the initial flurry of action takes place immediately after you publish, a blog post remains relevant forever. If you create content which is shareable and can be used by others in your niche to backlink to your site, you can continue driving traffic and generating leads for years to come.

Blogs are free marketing!

To upload a blog that is valuable and helps to drive sales costs you absolutely nothing! If you have an established website, uploading your blog content is completely free. Most blogging platforms are straightforward to use and the handy templates mean you don’t need to engage with a designer or web developer to take full advantage. You can blog at a frequency of your choice on a subject of your choice, and it won't cost you a single cent!

Blogs are one of the most effective online marketing strategies available, and if you're not blogging for business you’re missing out on the most effective way to keep up with the online competition. IF you’re not blogging regularly, do you need any more reasons to start today?!

I provide copy and written content personally tailored towards your target market.
Whether you're looking for appeal material for your grassroots charity, or you need written content for your corporate business, I provide copy and content that gets you results.
With five years' experience in the not-for-profit sector, I love to use my words to make a difference in both the immediate, and the ...